Pipe insert

ABSTRACT

There is provided an insert to be sealingly mounted into a plug hole of a pipe having a sealing area surrounding the plug hole. The insert comprises an internal unit and a fastener. The internal unit and the fastener have corresponding cooperating sealing portions and mounting portions. The sealing portion of the internal unit is formed with a flange adapted to be forced into the plug hole. The flange and the sealing portion of the fastener have corresponding sealing surfaces. These surfaces are adapted to sealingly clamp therebetween the sealing area of the pipe, when the insert is mounted into the plug hole. One of the sealing surfaces being in the form of a sealing edge and the other being in the form of a conical surface. When the fastener is mounted onto the internal unit, the sealing portions of the internal unit and the fastener form therebetween a chamber. The chamber is in fluid communication with the outside environment, allowing atmospheric pressure within the chamber.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to pipe inserts to be sealingly mounted on a pipe such as, for example, pipe connectors, in particular for use with flexible pipes such as for example lay-flat pipes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A lay-flat pipe is a pipe which, when unpressurised, is substantially flat and, when pressurized by a relatively low pressure, has a substantially circular cross section, similar to a fire hose. Such pipes are usually made of a flexible material and are mainly employed in irrigation systems, where they may be used as manifold pipes.

In the field of irrigation, such pipes are normally formed with plug holes disposed along the pipe, the pipe area surrounding each plug hole being used for mounting thereon pipe inserts for connection thereto of additional irrigation means such as branch pipes or the like, as disclosed for example in GB 2,187,622. Alternatively, inserts may be used to plug holes that are not in use, such as disclosed for example in U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,654. In both cases, the inserts have to be sealingly mounted into the plug holes to prevent leakage of liquid from the pipe, the pipe area surrounding each plug hole thus constituting the pipe's sealing area.

Inserts of the above kind normally comprise an internal unit and a fastener, each having a sealing portion and a mounting portion, such as disclosed in GB 2,187,622 mentioned above. The sealing portion of the internal unit is formed with a flange adapted to be forced into a plug hole. The mounting portion of the fastener is adapted to be snapped or screwed onto the mounting portion of the internal unit, so as to clamp the sealing area of the pipe surrounding the plug hole between the sealing portions of the internal unit and the fastener. The flange is usually formed with a raised edge adapted to facilitate sealing contact with the pipe's sealing area.

In flood irrigation, the insert may be in the form of a control gate which controls the flow of fluid exiting the pipe. U.S. Pat. No. 4,353,524 discloses a pipe having a ‘continuous type’ control gate which includes a plate that is fixed to the pipe and which may be pivotally rotated to provide a continuous range of fluid flows out of the pipe.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention there is provided a control gate mounted sealingly to an irrigation pipe, the gate being adapted to receive an adjusting element to limit the fluid flow therethrough and out of the pipe.

Generally, the control gate comprises a plug manually movable between a non-operative and an operative position wherein in the operative position the plug substantially stops the fluid flow out of the pipe.

Typically, the adjusting element is replaceable.

Preferably, for a given fluid pressure in the pipe the adjusting element adjusts the flow of fluid exiting the pipe to a single flow.

Typically, the flow adjusting element comprises an aperture through which the fluid passes when exiting the pipe.

Preferably, the gate has an axis and comprises a nozzle, the fluid flows through the gate along the axis and the nozzle diverts the flow of fluid in a direction transverse to the axis.

Typically, the irrigation pipe is a lay flat irrigation pipe.

If desired, the adjusting element is adapted to connect to an irrigation element.

Preferably, the irrigation element is a drip irrigation pipe.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to understand the invention and to see how it may be carried out in practice, embodiments will now be described, by a way of non-limiting examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a lay-flat pipe to be used in conjunction with an insert according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of an insert according to one embodiment of the present invention, mounted into a plug-hole of the lay-flat pipe of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the insert shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of an internal unit of the insert shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the internal unit shown in FIG. 4, when mounted into a plug-hole of the lay-flat pipe shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an isometric view of the internal unit and a fastener of the insert shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the insert shown in FIG. 2; and

FIGS. 8 to 12 are perspective views of an insert according to another aspect of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows a standard lay-flat pipe 70, having a plug hole 72.

In FIGS. 2 to 6, one example of an insert 10 in accordance with the present invention is shown, mounted into the plug hole 72 to urge the pipe to have, at the vicinity of the plug hole 72, a sealing area 76 with an edge 74 of diameter D_(PH) (seen in FIG. 3). The insert 10 has a longitudinal axis X-X and comprises an internal unit 20, a fastener 30 and a connector 50 coaxially mounted on the internal unit.

Referring to FIGS. 3 to 6, the internal unit is shown comprising a sealing portion 21 and a mounting portion 24. The sealing portion is formed with a flange 22 of external diameter D_(F) such that D_(F)>D_(PH). The flange 22 is formed with a rounded sealing edge 23 having axial extension H_(F). It also has an integral wing-shaped protrusion 28, to facilitate the insertion of the flange 22 into the plug hole 72. The mounting portion 24 of the internal unit 20 has a fastener engaging part 24 a with a bottom thread 25, a connector engaging part 24 b with a top thread 26, and a spacing 24 c therebetween. The connector engaging part 24 b is of a smaller diameter than the fastener engaging part 24 a. The internal unit 20 is further formed with a recessed region 42 between the flange 22 and the fastener engaging part 24 a, and with keyways 27 axially extending from the recessed region 42 to the region of the spacing 24 c. A lumen 150 having a peripheral lumen face 155 extends axially through the internal unit 20.

The fastener also comprises a sealing portion 31 and a mounting portion 33. The sealing portion is formed with an internal conical surface 32, which has an axial extension H_(C) such that H_(C)>H_(F), and which has a narrow end with a small diameter D_(C2) and a wide end with a large diameter D_(C1), such that D_(C1)>D_(F)>D_(C2). The mounting portion 33 is formed with an internal thread 34, for screwing the fastener 30 onto the bottom thread 25 of the internal unit 20. The fastener 30 further comprises a plurality of radial fastening protrusions 35, adapted to assist the user to grasp the fastener 30 when screwing it onto the internal unit 20. The mounting portion of the fastener is formed with an integral stopper 60 to ensure the spacing between the connector 50 and the fastener 30 is kept free when both the fastener and the connector are mounted on the mounting portion of the internal unit.

In operation, the wing shaped protrusion 28 of the internal unit 20, is first forced through the plug hole 72 of the pipe 70, followed by the flange 22. Once the flange 22 is inserted into the plug hole 72, the fastener 30 is screwed onto the bottom thread 25 of the internal unit 20, until the sealing area 76 of the pipe 70 is securely clamped between the conical surface 32 at a sealing region 32′ thereof and the rounded sealing edge 23. The connector 50 is then mounted on the top thread 26 of the internal unit 20. Fluid communication of the pipe 70 with an outside environment of the pipe is provided by the lumen 150 of the internal unit 20.

In this position, a chamber 40 is created between the recessed region 42 of the internal unit 20 and the area of the conical surface 32 of the fastener disposed between the narrow end D_(C2) of the conical surface 32 and its sealing region 32′, such that the edge 74 of the plug hole 72 is disposed in the chamber 40. The keyways 27 which extend between the chamber 40 and the area of the spacing 24 c between the fastener 30 and the connector 50 provide fluid communication of the chamber 40 with the outside environment, maintaining atmospheric pressure therein. In the event of leakage from the pipe 70 in the sealing region 32′, the liquid will flow into the chamber 40. Due to the atmospheric pressure within the chamber 40, pressurization of the liquid will not take place, and thus the risk of liquid penetrating into the layers of the pipe 70 is reduced, consequently reducing the possibility of extensive damage or rupture of the pipe 70.

In addition to the above measures, due to the fact that clamping of the sealing area 76 of the pipe is achieved between the relatively short axial extension H_(F) of the sealing edge 23 and the extended conical surface 32 and it may take place at a plurality of locations along the conical surface 32, which allows the use of the insert 10 with pipes having different thicknesses, whereby the risk of leakage in the pipe is reduced, Furthermore, due to the rounded shape of the sealing edge, the risk of damage to the sealing area 76 of the pipe 70 is significantly reduced.

Attention is now drawn to FIG. 7. In an embodiment, the internal unit 20 of the insert 10 is optionally provided with an additional sealing edge that is formed on a seal 100. The seal 100 is located on a face 110 of the flange 22 that faces axially out of the pipe 70. In addition to the sealing region 32′, the pipe 70 in this embodiment is also securely clamped at a secondary sealing region 132′ which is formed between the conical surface 32 of the fastener 30 and the seal 100, when the fastener 30 is screwed onto the internal unit 20. The seal 100 is located about the axis X-X and has a diameter D_(S) at the secondary sealing region 132′ which is larger than the diameter D_(PH) of the edge 74. This ensures that the pipe 70 overlies the seal 100 after the internal unit 20 is forced through the plug hole 72. The seal 100 is made of flexible or elastic material such as Silicone rubber, NBR, EPDM, EPM or SBR.

It is noted that the internal unit can sealingly mount into the plug hole of the pipe using, inter alia, at least one of the seal 100 or the rounded sealing edge 23.

Attention is now drawn to FIGS. 8 to 11 to show embodiments of the invention which may be used for example in flood irrigation to distribute fluid into furrows of a field. In these embodiments, the inserts of the pipe function as control gates which control the flow of fluid exiting the pipe.

In an embodiment shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the insert's internal unit 20 has a slit 140 that is formed in the spacing 24 c and communicates with the lumen 150. A strip 160 having three flow adjusting elements 175, each including a circular aperture 170 (only two are shown), is placed through the slit 140 into the lumen. Each aperture is located about an auxiliary axis X′ and has a different diameter D_(E). All the apertures have a smaller diameter than the diameter of the lumen and therefore each aperture limits the flow of fluid exiting the pipe via the control gate.

The strip may be moved to locate any given adjusting element in the lumen and in axial alignment with the longitudinal axis. By moving the trip the adjusting element located in the lumen may be replaced by its neighboring adjusting element. For a given internal fluid pressure in the pipe, the fluid flow exiting the pipe is defined according to the diameter of the adjusting element wherein a smaller or larger diameter D_(E) causes the flow of fluid exiting the pipe 70 to respectively decrease or increase.

The strip is additionally provided with a plug area 210 which, when moved into an operative position in the lumen, substantially plugs the internal unit to stop the flow of fluid exiting the pipe via the lumen.

Optionally, the insert is provided with a nozzle 180 that is mounted at an inner end thereof (not shown) to an outer end 185 of the internal unit 20. A diverting portion 200 of the nozzle 180, which extends along a diverting axis Y, is located at an outer end of the nozzle 180 and a cavity 190 of the nozzle 180 is formed therein and opens out to the inner and outer ends of the nozzle 180. When the nozzle is mounted to the internal unit, the cavity is in fluid communication with the lumen and the diverting axis Y is transverse to the longitudinal axis X-X. Therefore, fluid exiting the pipe 70 via the nozzle will be diverted to flow in a direction Y transverse to the longitudinal axis X-X.

The nozzle may be useful, for example, in the event that the pipe undergoes elongation which causes a given insert to move in relation to its respective furrow. If this occurs, the nozzle may be mounted to the insert and adjusted to re-direct the fluid into the furrow.

Attention is now drawn to FIGS. 10 to 11. In an embodiment, the internal unit 20 has an internal thread 165 (shown in FIG. 12) that is formed on the lumen face 155 and a disk 220 is threadingly engaged in the internal thread. The disk 220 has a flow adjusting element 175 which includes a circular aperture 170 having a diameter D_(E) that extends axially along the longitudinal axis X-X when the disk is located in the internal unit 20.

In the same manner as the strip 160, the disk 220 adjusts the flow of fluid exiting the pipe 70 via the lumen 150 according to the diameter D_(E) of the aperture 170. For a given internal fluid pressure in the pipe, the replacement of the disk 220 by a disk having a smaller or larger diameter D_(E) causes the flow of fluid exiting the pipe 70 to respectively decrease or increase. The aperture of each disk is of a smaller diameter than the diameter of the lumen and therefore limits the flow of fluid exiting the pipe via the control gate. A plug 230 of the internal unit, which is attached thereto, may be threadingly engaged in an operative position on the top thread 26 of the internal unit to substantially stop the flow of fluid exiting the pipe via the internal unit 20.

Different crops being irrigated may require different fluid flows or a given crop may require different fluid flows at various stages of its growth. The ability to choose the flow of fluid exiting the pipe from a pre-defined set of flows as opposed to choosing it from a continuous range as in the prior art, results in a more efficient and precise irrigation which leaves less room for human error. In the field, an operator attempting to set adjacent ‘continuous type’ control gates to a similar fluid flow may erroneously set them to different fluid flows. The probability of such an error occurring may be amplified in the event that several pipes each having a large number of control gates are set in the field. Providing the operator in the field with a pre-defined set to chose from decreases the probability of such errors occurring.

Attention is now drawn to FIG. 12. The disk may be in the form of an adjuster 240 with an internal thread at the aperture. The adjuster 240 is adapted to threadingly receive a connector 250 that is adapted, in turn, to connect to an irrigation element 260. The irrigation element may be any element used in irrigation such as a drip irrigation pipe, a sprinkler, a valve or a pressure regulator. Therefore, the adjusting element (shown in 11), which may be used in flood irrigation to adjust the fluid flow exiting the pipe, may also be used to adapt the control gate for use with an irrigation element.

Those skilled in the art to which this invention pertains will readily appreciate that numerous changes, variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention mutatis mutandis. 

1. A control gate mounted sealingly to an irrigation pipe, the gate being adapted to receive an adjusting element to limit the fluid flow therethrough and out of the pipe.
 2. A control gate according to claim 1, comprising a plug manually movable between a non-operative and an operative position wherein in the operative position the plug substantially stops the fluid flow out of the pipe.
 3. A control gate according to claim 1, wherein the adjusting element is replaceable.
 4. A control gate according to claim 1, wherein for a given fluid pressure in the pipe the adjusting element adjusts the flow of fluid exiting the pipe to a single flow.
 5. A control gate according to claim 1, wherein the flow adjusting element comprises an aperture through which the fluid passes when exiting the pipe.
 6. A control gate according to claim 1, wherein the gate has an axis and comprises a nozzle, the fluid flows through the gate along the axis and the nozzle diverts the flow of fluid in a direction transverse to the axis.
 7. A control gate according to claim 1, wherein the irrigation pipe is a lay flat irrigation pipe.
 8. A control gate according to claim 1, wherein the adjusting element is adapted to connect to an irrigation element.
 9. A control gate according to claim 8, wherein the irrigation element is a drip irrigation pipe. 